Chapter 322: Young and Impressive Boss Zhou

The Yangcheng Grand Hotel is the largest and finest hotel in Linyang City. It has an interesting history; originally, it was the municipal guesthouse for Linyang City's Party Committee and government. However, with the continuous development of Linyang's economy, especially with the establishment of the province's first township industrial park, the city's prestige quickly rose. The hotel underwent renovations and was renamed Yangcheng Grand Hotel to reflect its new status.

Originally, Linyang was not a highly economically active coastal city, and while there were some hotels and guesthouses, their conditions were average. With the old foundation of the Party Committee guesthouse and the new grand renovations, Yangcheng Grand Hotel became the best hotel in Linyang, far surpassing other local hotels in its class.

Xiaoxiao and Bingbing were waitresses at Yangcheng Grand Hotel. On this day, they were called by the head waitress to the entrance for reception duties. Bingbing complained, "Xiaoxiao, why is Wang Jie making us stand at the entrance like gatekeepers?"

Another girl quickly gestured for silence, "Don't say that. I know the entire second floor's banquet hall has been booked today. Some big shot is coming."

This revelation left Bingbing a bit stunned, "Booked the entire second floor? Who is coming? Is it some grand banquet?"

The answer soon presented itself as a black car with a capital Beijing license plate pulled up. Bingbing exclaimed, "Xiaoxiao, look at that car! It has a Beijing license plate! In all the time I've worked here, this is the first Beijing license plate I've seen!"

"Just a Beijing license plate? What's the big deal? It's not like they're here for a car show," Xiaoxiao replied dismissively. However, her eyes were also fixed on the car.

Their reaction was understandable; Beijing, as the capital, held a sacred place in the minds of ordinary people, and the sight of a private car from Beijing was rare and impressive in a central city like Linyang.

Seeing Bingbing's amazement, Xiaoxiao quickly clarified, "I'm not just looking at the license plate. We've had Beijing plates before. I'm looking at the car itself."

"The car? Is it expensive?" Bingbing asked skeptically.

Xiaoxiao looked at the car closely and proudly explained, "Bingbing, you don't recognize it? That's a Santana. You see that 'W'-shaped logo? And the 'Santana, fear nothing' slogan? It's a high-end car. In Linyang, only top officials like the city mayor or the Party Secretary drive such cars."

"I remember that slogan!" Bingbing said excitedly. "But look, more cars with Beijing plates are arriving!"

Xiaoxiao looked where Bingbing was pointing and indeed saw many Santana cars with Beijing plates arriving. Xiaoxiao muttered, "My goodness, are central leaders coming to inspect or something? Why so many Beijing cars?"

"Stop guessing. These are all cars from central engineering bureaus. The people coming are from these bureaus. The second floor banquet hall is reserved for their use," a sudden voice startled Xiaoxiao and Bingbing.

They turned to see the head waitress, who had arrived without them noticing. They hurried to greet her, and she waved it off, understanding they were new and unfamiliar with such big events. It was better they faced such things now than later.

"So it's the central engineering bureaus," Bingbing said. "No wonder they drive such nice cars. Those in engineering make good money. I heard the highway we're building here costs billions!"

Xiaoxiao was puzzled, "But why are these big shots here? Renting the entire second-floor banquet hall seems like overkill. Are they holding an important meeting?"

"It probably isn't an important meeting. You may not know, but central leaders are very high-ranking. These bureau heads are of the same level as our city Party Secretary. If it were a meeting, our Party Secretary would definitely be present. But I don't see any other cars," the head waitress said, looking around. "So, it might just be an internal dinner for the bureaus."

"Wow! People from Beijing are so impressive. Even a bureau chief can be on par with our Party Secretary. It's like having a royal envoy from ancient times!" Bingbing exclaimed.

Xiaoxiao questioned, "But didn't they book the entire second-floor banquet hall? Isn't that too much for just an internal event?"

"I don't think it's a problem. If these Beijing leaders are this important, having a large banquet hall for just a few people is normal. They have money and power, so they can be so extravagant," Bingbing explained.

Xiaoxiao wasn't sure how to respond to Bingbing's explanation, and the head waitress didn't want to waste time with them. She instructed them to be alert for the arrival of the central engineering bureau leaders.

What puzzled them was that the bureau people, after arriving, did not enter the hotel but waited at the entrance. Xiaoxiao wondered, "Could there be another important leader coming? Why are they still waiting outside?"

"Couldn't be. They're high-ranking officials who can stand on equal footing with our Party Secretary. Is there someone more significant than them coming to Linyang?" Bingbing said.

The answer came shortly after, when another car pulled up. Seeing this car, the bureau leaders quickly went to greet it.

Xiaoxiao and Bingbing, along with their head waitress, were stunned by this development. The more observant head waitress noted, "Look at that car. It's an Audi!"

Xiaoxiao and Bingbing looked at the head waitress confusedly, "What's an Audi? Is it more impressive than a Santana?"

"Of course," the head waitress said. "Audi is a high-end foreign brand, much better than Santana. This one even has a Lingnan license plate. It might be someone important from Lingnan. You know, we often have high-profile visitors due to the township industrial park in Nanhui County. Previously, a provincial deputy secretary from Jiangnan Province visited. So be on your toes and perform well!"

"But Wang Jie, that doesn't seem like a big shot. The person is quite young!" Xiaoxiao pointed out.

The head waitress looked in the direction Xiaoxiao indicated. She saw that the Audi was indeed a high-end car, but the two people getting out were quite young. Bingbing exclaimed, "Wow! They're so impressive. They must be from a prominent Beijing family. Look, even the engineering bureau leaders are eagerly shaking hands with them!"

Xiaoxiao and Bingbing, both intrigued and excited, saw the young man with the engineers. The head waitress suddenly realized, "That young man is Zhou Ming, a native of Linyang!"

With this explanation, Xiaoxiao and Bingbing were even more excited. They craned their necks to see Zhou Ming, as if doing so would guarantee their prosperity.

"So it's Zhou Ming! He's so young! How did he achieve so much at such a young age? He dealt with the criminal gangs in Jin Ning and now he's getting such high respect from these central engineering officials. He truly is a hero of our Ling Yang!"

Xiao Xiao and Bing Bing were excited, and their previous disagreements were now overshadowed by their admiration for Zhou Ming. Their thoughts had converged in awe of his accomplishments.

"Look, look, the reception is over, and they are all coming this way!" Bing Bing said excitedly.

At this moment, the head waitress, who had been the first to react, quickly instructed Xiao Xiao and Bing Bing to stand at attention and wait for Zhou Ming and the other central engineering officials. As Zhou Ming approached with the other officials, the head waitress greeted them warmly. Zhou Ming smiled and thanked her before stepping into the hotel.

Once Zhou Ming and the officials had entered the hotel, Bing Bing couldn't contain her excitement any longer and started to gush, startling both the head waitress and Xiao Xiao.

The head waitress and Xiao Xiao looked at Bing Bing in confusion, prompting Bing Bing to explain, "Boss Zhou is really so young and handsome. Even though the leaders from the engineering bureaus can stand on equal footing with our city's top officials, they all looked like subordinates in front of him. It's amazing!"

"And," Bing Bing added, "Did you see that? Zhou Ming smiled at me! He must like me, or else he wouldn't have smiled at me. I'm so thrilled and excited!"

Unfortunately, Zhou Ming hadn't noticed the young hotel staff member. Even if he had, it wouldn't have made a difference; Zhou Ming wasn't in the mood for such matters. Right now, he had a more important task at hand: attending the dinner with the engineering officials, a dinner meant to express their gratitude.